2.6 GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Project Gets Final Federal Go-Ahead to Begin Construction

January 30, 2024, by Adnan Memija

Dominion Energy has received the last two major federal approvals needed to begin construction of its 2.6 GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project, located 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach in the US.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) provided its final approval of CVOW’s Construction and Operations Plan (COP), which authorises construction offshore. Recently, the developer received approval from the US Department of Interior, the final step in the National Environmental Policy Act review process, for the CVOW COP.

The US Army Corps of Engineers issued its permit to allow for permitted impacts on the US waters, including the route of the electric transmission line that will connect the renewable energy generated offshore to the electric grid onshore.

“Virginia is leading the way for offshore wind as we near the start of offshore construction for Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind. These regulatory approvals keep CVOW on time and on budget as we focus on our mission of providing customers with reliable, affordable and increasingly clean energy,” said Bob Blue, Dominion Energy’s chair, president, and chief executive officer.

The Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project will comprise 176 Siemens Gamesa 14 MW wind turbines and three offshore substations in the 113,000-acre commercial lease area.

Construction and fabrication activities are already underway, with the monopile foundations arriving at the Portsmouth Marine Terminal in Virginia.

As previously reported, Dominion Energy selected a consortium of DEME and Prysmian as the Balance of Plant (BoP) contractors in charge of the transportation and installation of the foundations and the substations, and the engineering, procurement, construction, and installation (EPCI) services for the inter-array and export cables for what will be the largest commercial offshore wind farm in the United States.

Offshore construction activities related to the export cable and the monopile foundation installation are expected to begin in the second quarter of this year.

In addition, some onshore activities began in November 2023 following BOEM’s Record of Decision and will ramp up with these last approvals, said the developer.

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More than 750 Virginia-based workers – nearly 530 in the Hampton Roads region – have been engaged on the CVOW project or with other businesses supporting the wind farm, according to Dominion Energy.

This work includes redevelopment activities at the Portsmouth Marine Terminal, construction of the offshore wind Monitoring and Coordination Center, maritime provisioning, ship upkeep, heavy lift and rigging, cyber security, food service, and hospitality.

More than 1,000 local jobs will be needed to support ongoing operations and maintenance of this facility after the project begins commercial operation, the developer said.

Once fully constructed in late 2026, the CVOW project will generate enough renewable energy to power up to 660,000 homes.